Birthday Dinner for a fairly large group

Hi All,I'm a newly minted chowhound, and am hoping for a little guidance here from the oracles. In celebration of my 23rd birthday, a group of my friends (exact number TBA, I'm guessing it'll be around 15 or so people) and I want to get together to have dinner/drinks in Manhattan on, as it's the most egalitarian of places for us to meet (people coming from LI, Queens, Brooklyn, etc). I have some ideas in mind, but I'm looking for the following:

someplace good for a large group (obviously)about $10-$15 per entreeCreative American/Italian/Bar Food/Tex-Mexliquor license

at present, I've been so far reccommended to Cowgirl Hall of Fame (which I like very much), Heartland Brewery (never been), and O'Lunney's of Time Square (good fun place, decent fare, excellent service/vibe). I'm hoping to discover something new & exciting.

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